This page contains information about the chapter 'Politics in Laois-Offaly 1922-1992' in the book Laois: history and society, interdisciplinary essays on the history of an Irish county, edited by Padraig G Lane and William Nolan (Dublin: Geography Publications, 1999), pp. 657-87, ISBN 0-906602-46-7.

Studying Irish politics in one constituency over a seventy-year period can throw light on aspects of politics studied more widely, including: backgrounds of and turnover in the political elite, parliamentary activity (speeches and parliamentary questions), party organisation, voting behaviour, changing patterns of party competititon, determinants of candidates' votes, bailiwicks and the 'friends and neighbours' effect, changes in campaigning styles and techniques, and media coverage. For example, the friends and neighbours effect is shown clearly by the tendency of virtually all candidates to win a higher percentage of votes in their own county than in the constituency as a whole, a higher proportion still in their own local electoral area, and the highest percentage of all in the vicinity of their own home base (see table 11, page 677 and table 12, page 678).

For the full chapter, click here (file LaoisOffalyPolitics99.pdf, 8.9 Mb).